Saudi Arabia sowing discord among Muslims: Cleric

A top Malaysian Sunni cleric says a plot involving the United States, Israel and Saudi Arabia has been hatched to cause sectarian conflict among Muslim nations.

“Saudi Arabia has been influenced by a US and European political game,” Abdul Hadi Awang told Press TV on Saturday.

“The Saudis and other Arab countries have turned their lands into Western bases. They do this not to support Islam but to gain power,” added Awang, who is the president of the Parti Islam SeMalaysia, an Islamic political party in Malaysia.“This makes us (feel) sorry that the Saudi government has been made to serve Israeli and Western interests,” he stated.

“It is a Western plot to safeguard the interests of Israel and the West. They use religion as a tool for this game by using media people and political figures. Malaysia has been influenced as well,” Awang noted.

He said the plot is aimed at pitting regional countries against one another in an effort to provide security for Israel.

Awang stated those behind the project are angered by the progress they see in the Muslim world, especially in Iran.

The cleric added that Malaysian scholars have held conferences and issued statements to raise awareness about the issue.

In an interview with Press TV in November 2013, American political commentator Jim W. Dean said that Saudi Arabia and Israel were funding and executing terrorist activities in the Middle East.

“Israel and Saudi Arabia are the two most active terrorist organizations in the Middle East. They have tremendous experience on Israel side and they have unlimited funding on Saudi Arabia side,” he said.